1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to apparatus used to clean paint from paint rollers and, more particularly, to a unique hand held paint roller cleaner for attachment to the end of a garden hose.
2. The Prior Art
The development of latex based paints has significantly lessened the amount of effort and work that is required to clean rollers and brushes after painting so that they can be reused. Latex based paints, while in a wet state, are readily water soluble and thus, brushes and rollers can simply be cleaned with water. This is a significant improvement over enamel based paints which require that the brushes and rollers be soaked in turpentine to remove the paint and then washed with soap and water to remove the turpentine.
Even though latex based paints can be cleaned with just water, anyone who has ever cleaned a paint roller realizes that significant effort is still required to clean all of the paint from the fiber forming the roller element. Any paint which remains in the fibers lessens the reusable life of the roller.
In the past, rollers have typically been cleaned in a sink or a bucket by simply immersing them in water and vigorously rubbing the fibers by hand to insure that all of the paint is loosened and removed. This method, while being one of the simplest, is also probably the messiest and most time consuming. The person cleaning the roller gets paint on his hands and arms which must in turn be washed off. Also, the bucket or sink becomes coated with paint and thus, must be cleaned and rinsed after the roller is cleaned. Additionally, the roller usually retains a significant amount of paint even after washing the roller in this manner, unless the process is repeated several times.
Another method which has often been used is to simply squirt the roller with a stream of water from a garden hose. When washing a paint roller with a garden hose, it is difficult to control the force of the spray and also the angle at which it impinges the paint roller. Also, there is no way that the roller element can be vigorously rubbed so as to loosen and remove the paint without first setting the hose down. Again, this method, though simple, is both inconvenient and time consuming.
In an attempt to eliminate these problems, several devices have been developed to clean paint rollers. These devices usually comprise cylindrical containers which enclose the roller, together with some type of sprayer for directing a stream of water against the roller. See, for example, U.S. Pat. Nos. 2,831,488, 3,075,534, 3,857,599, 3,731,697 and 3,897,797.
These specially designed devices for cleaning paint rollers may eliminate, to some extent, the problems associated with the first two methods of cleaning paint rollers as mentioned above. By directing a high pressure stream of water against the roller, the paint is generally loosened and removed more easily. However, these devices also appear to be somewhat complicated and, in most instances, may well be more expensive than the paint roller itself. Thus, it is probably not practical for a homeowner doing occasional painting to invest in these devices. It would be easier for him simply to discard the roller and purchase a new one.
Accordingly, what is needed in the art is a device which is inexpensive to manufacture, simple to use, and which can be used to effectively clean paint rollers such that they may be reused.